Exhaling a shaky breath, I nod. “Still doesn’t negate my feelings.”
Jonah carries two large coolers back to the porch and tries to enter our house, but I stop him and grab for the coolers. “I’ll load these up.”
“I can do it! You go pack your stuff.”
“You’re not allowed in here, Jonah. I’m sorry, but this is my space.”
“Oh,” he says, and pulls at the back of his neck. “Okay. I’ll just... wait here on the porch then. Bring everything out, and I’ll load up.”
True to his word, he stays put while we pack. He loads the coolers and bags into the SUV and helps the girls up to their seats in the back. I’m a stickler for car seats, but we’re driving down a country road to the house next door, so I don’t bother worrying.
My focus halts on the little window decals at the corner of his back window. It’s one of those stick figure families you’d see on the back of a minivan, but it’s just... a man, a horse, two dogs, two goats, and eight ducks.
Who is this man?
Jonah hops in the vehicle last and has a big smile on his face, seemingly unaffected by the maelstrom outside or by how wet his car’s interior has become. “Alright, let’s do this! Who likes pancakes?” he asks as he puts the vehicle in drive.
“Me,” Amber and Delta say from the back seat. Lo raises her hand.
“Perfect. That’s what we’re having in the morning.” As soon as he pulls out onto the road, there’s an incoming call, and the name Angie Pangie pops up on the dash screenbefore he accepts it. “Hey sis.”
“Hey, sorry I missed your call.”
“That’s okay. I was just checking on you guys with the storm and everything. Do you have power?”
There’s a long pause before she speaks. “You... you’re checking on us?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh, um... yeah, we’re fine. We lost power, but Raf got the generator running. We’re okay. Oh, and Ivy is with us. She’s sleeping off a long delivery from yesterday.”
“Okay, that’s why she didn’t answer when I called. Good. You’re welcome to stay with me if you need to. I have plenty of space.”
“Thanks, baby brother. That’s... surprisingly sweet of you.”
He guffaws as he turns into his driveway. “I’m a sweet guy.”
“I know.”
“I gotta go. I have some Wilde ladies in my car, and we’re gonna get settled in at my place.”
“You what?” Angie exclaims.
“Call me if you need anything!” He hangs up and pulls into his attached four-car garage. “Alright, you ladies head on inside. All your bedrooms will be on the second floor. Pick whichever one you want. I’ll unload everything.”
“Are Yogi and Rugger inside?” Delta asks as we all exit the vehicle.
“Yogi is. He’s a big scaredy dog with storms. Rugger’s in the barn with everyone else, keeping them safe.”
Delta’s face falls. “He sleeps in the barn? Is he scared?”
I pick her up and head for the side door of the house. “That’s normal for a dog like him, sweetie. He’s a guardian. His job is to protect his family from coyotes and other predators.”
“And he loves his job,” Jonah adds, and follows us into thehouse.
Once we find a room and Jonah drops our bags, he leaves us to finish unpacking the SUV and stock the fridge, and I gawk with Amber at the beauty of his home. We had a sense of what it would look like from the outside, but it’s even more incredible inside. Fieldstone walls and original wood features mark every inch. The custom doors and trim look like they've been here since it was built over a hundred years ago. Intricate floors with beautiful, timeless designs flow through every room. Even the ensuite to our guest room hosts marble tile with a black, swirling mosaic design.
The only thing missing from nearly every room we’ve seen is furniture. There are mattresses and bedding in the rooms, but not much else.
